


Pretty Brown Eyes

by anissa_qiaolian



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Canon Compliant, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Songfic, Tahiti Era, kind of sad since its
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-13
Updated: 2019-09-13
Packaged: 2020-10-17 22:56:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 524
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20628908
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anissa_qiaolian/pseuds/anissa_qiaolian
Summary: Since all I can write is song fics these days





	Pretty Brown Eyes

It was getting near the end.

  
Phil liked to pretend he preferred to spend the day cuddling with her in bed instead of going out and exploring the island, like they used to. But she could clearly see the pain in his eyes; hear the steady beat of his heart grow a little bit weaker day by day.

  
They both knew the truth.

And the truth was that his days were measured. If he got up from the bed any more that he had to, to brush his teeth and use the bathroom (where Melinda stood silent watch just outside the door) there was in increasing chance that he would not be able to get back up.

  
So she stayed with him. Until the very end, a silence promise to herself that she could never break, could never tell Phil because that would trigger his guilt and break his heart, and he literally could not afford a broken heart at this point.

  
One day they were listening to the bluetooth speaker he brought from his office. Melinda was pretending to read a novel at his side. Her eyes darted back and forth between the edge of the book, to keep her cover, and his vitals showing on the tablet on the nightstand. Phil reached over her head and turned the volume up.

  
The horn intro to Mint Condition’s 90’s hit Pretty Brown Eyes fills their ears and Phil smiles. Her eyebrows raise and despite the intense urge she had to roll her eyes, Melinda found herself smiling.

  
“Any particular reason you chose to play this song?”, she asks. He tucks his arm around her and she sets down the book and snuggles into him. He kisses the top of her head.

  
“A few. The song’s called Pretty Brown Eyes and I don’t know if you’ve noticed, Mel, but you definitely fit the criteria. Also,” his face sobers up and she lifts her head in concern. He opens his mouth, then shakes it off. “I don’t know. Something about the lyrics got me thinking.”

  
They just listen after that. Melinda lets her eyelids flutter closed as the smooth R&B melody fills their ears. Phil taps his fingers gently on her forearm in time with the rhythm.

  
_Pretty brown eyes_  
Don’t tell your friends  
That I mean nothing to ya

_Please don’t deny the truth_  
Pretty brown eyes  
You keep holding on  
To your thoughts of rejection  
If you’re with me your secured

_Pretty brown eyes_  
Quit breaking my heart  
Breaking my heart

The lyric that sticks with Melinda the most, when it all is said and done, isn’t the title at all.

  
It’s the refrain, that’s repeated in a gorgeous falsetto all the way through. This song is about a broken heart.

  
It’s about a lover begging his partner not to break his heart.

  
That’s the message she can’t shake off, the tears she cries in her sleep to the ragged sound of Phil’s breathing. It was something they both felt and were both too scared to tell each other.

  
They fell asleep in each other’s arms, to the melody of two broken hearts.


End file.
